Children’s books

BOYS DON’T CRY by Malorie Blackman (A&C Black; €15.40). On the very day when Dante is waiting for his A-Level results, he has a surprise visitor from his past – his former girlfriend Melanie, complete with a baby, which she dumps on Dante before scarpering to start a new life.

Dante’s widowed father is furious that Dante has been so careless in his love life, but soon impresses on him that baby Emma is now his sole responsibility.

Support comes from a surprising quarter as brother Adam adores the idea of being an uncle because as he he will never be a father as he is a cheerful, committed gay. Dante forgoes a university career to raise the baby, but soon discovers that looking after his brother is altogether more difficult. This is an excellent study in relationships within the family and in society. Despite their human inadequacies, the joint efforts of the three males to come to terms with their changing roles are truly inspirational. Suitable for older teens.

The Young Chieftain by Ken Howard (Random House; €14.10). When Jamie MacDoran’s father is killed in an accident, tradition demands that his body be returned to Scotland for burial, as he was chieftain of his clan. Californian-born Jamie and his mum accompany the body to a remote Scottish island. The welcome they get is ambiguous, to say the least, especially as Jamie, who is coloured, is now the heir apparent to the chieftainship, a fact much resented as his father had deserted his people for America years ago. What follows is a frantic effort by Jamie to win the approval of the islanders, not always successfully. The contrast between the two civilisations is the driving force of the story, though the descriptions of Scottish life are initially patronising.

Special Times (A&C Black) is a series of informative books about all the major world religions. What is particularly pleasing is that the young reader is asked to think about the special times (not necessarily religious) in his or her life.